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PRONOUNCED IN THE 



METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH, 
HEMPSTEAD, JULY 4, 1831, 

BEING THE 

55TH ANNIVERSARY OF AMERICAN INDEPENDENCE. 

BY WILLIAM R. PRINCE, ESQ. 

HEMPSTEAD, (L. I.) N. Y. 

PRINTED BY WILLIAM HUTCHINSON. 

1831. 






Hempstead, Jlt.y &, 1831. 

Sir: We, the Sub-Committee of Arrangements, for celebrating 
the fifty-tiflh Aniiiversarv of American Independence, in tlic I'own of 
Hem; stead, being bighlv gratiiied with the Oration pronounced by you 
on that occasion : and in concurrence with the wislies of many who 
heard it, respectfully solicit a coi). f«r ;.iiblication. 

BENJ. F. THOMPSON, 
EDWIN- WEBB, 
WILL. HUTCHINSON. 
JACOB COLES, 
THOS. D. CARMAN. 
HENRY A. BURTIS.' 
William R. Prinxe, Esa. 

Flushing, Long I.=land. 



Flushing, July 13th, 1831. 

Gektleaien: Duly impressed by the very kind sentiments con- 
tained in your note of the 8th instant, and sensible of the honor confer- 
red Ujion me by your request for a copy of the Oration delivered in your 
town, at the recent Anniversary of our Country's Independence, 1 most 
cheerfully comply with sour Ji-sire, and transmit it herewith. 

Permit me, however, to avail m\self of the opportunity thus pre- 
sented, to express my regret that the numerous avocations which neces- 
sarily called for my attention, did not admit of my bestowing as nmch 
time on the subject as it merited; and 1 therefore solicit from your- 
selves and the public, a kinil indulgence for its imperfections. 
With the highest respect, 

W^M. ROBERT PRINCE. 
To Messrs. Beni. P. Thompson, 
Edwin Webb, 

Wm. Hotchinson, I Sub-Committee of 

Jacob Coles, f" Arrangements. &c. &c. 

Thos. D. Carman, 
Henhy A. BcfiTis, 



ORATIOir. 

Friends and Fellow Republtcans, 

The auspicious day which we have met to cele* 
brate, is that which gave birth to a nation — and most 
justly and emphatically has one of the fathers of out 
country declared to us, that it should be commemora- 
ted, not only by prayer, but by every joyous demonstra- 
tion. Iv despotic countries it is often the unholy task 
to celebrate the birth day of a tyrant, or the period of 
national subjugation. Ours is a nobler purpose: we 
have met, to render our tribute to the emancipation of 
the mind, and to ofier our oblation on the altar of free- 
dom. 

Among the numerous benefits which our Independence 
has conferred upon the world, by far the most important 
one, is the salutary lesson which the success of our in- 
stitutions has taught to mankind. For, while on the one 
hand, it has assured those nations who are solicitous for 
freedom, that man is capable of self-government, and of 
directing his own energies ; it has on the other, silen- 
ced the cavillings of prejudice, and shown to Monarchs 
that they hold their prerogative by a very attenuated 
sway. At the eventful period which we this day com- 
memorate, there did not exist upon the earth, any go- 
vernment whatever, which derived its laws solely from 
the popular voice. 

The ancient republics of Greece and Rome had long 
previously sunk beneath the weight of contending fac- 
tions; the gross ignorance of a great mass of their po- 



pulation, having paved the way for that tyranny which 
usurped the reins of power. The trophies so nobly won 
on the plains of Marathon, and the laurels which ador- 
ned the victors of Thermopylae, had been tarnished by 
the contagious influence of power and corruption, or 
been rent by the hand of violence and oppression. 

The faxorite sons of freedom had been immolated at 
the shrine of their devotions; and the once fertile lields 
were stained with the blood of their heroes. 

TTie spirit of liberty, prostrated before the relentless 
hand of barbarism, had fled in despair, from the land of 
the vine and the olive, to weep with Marius over the 
ruins of Carthage. Her towers dismantled and despoi- 
led, served but as the memento's of fallen greatness, and 
the proudest monuments of her former glory, profaned 
by sacrilegious hands, had crumbled to the dust. Her 
naked standard stripped of the trophies which had once 
so brilliantly adorned it, presented to the view but the 
semblance of that desolation which marked her cause 
throughout the earth. The sacred flame which once il- 
lumined the world with its brightness, seemed to be 
extinguished forever, and her temples displayed only 
the lone silence of despair. For ages, no voice had 
been heard at her altars, and her wounded spirit seemed 
to have breathed its expiring gasp before the shrine of 
despotism. 

It was at this momentous era, that the genius of our 
Country arose in all the majesty of power, and the noble 
band whom we proudly reverence as the fathers of our 
Republic, boldly arrayed themselves as the Champions 
of her cause, and sent forth their message of defiance to 
the w()rld. 



The events of that glorious and triumphant contest 
are familiar to you all — let it suffice here to say, that the 
Standard of Freedom was firmly implanted on the Ame- 
rican Shore, where her victorious flag continues to wave 
as an inspiring beacon to her votaries. 

Think not, my fellow citizens, that the spirit of your 
fathers slumbers in ignoble repose. The sacred fire 
which animated tlie Heroes of Lexington, and led us 
triumphant through the War of Independence, has spread 
its influence to every clime. The Genius of Liberty has 
stretched forth her wings, and her glorious mandates 
have been heard, alike in the hamlet of the peasant, and 
in the palaces of Kings. 

Her voice has been sounded on the plains of Mexico, 
and loudly re-echoed in the Andes. 

Her magic impulse inspired our brethren of the South 
Avith that sacred ardor, which, triumphing over the sa- 
traps of tyranny, has dashed invasion from their shores. 

Nor has her potent influence been, confined alone to 
the Western hemisphere. 

Passing the wide expanse of Ocean, she has raised her 
standard in the Eastern World. The countries of a La 
Fayette and a Pitt have acknowledged her genial power ; 
and while the fertile fields of Belfrium bear witness to 
her vivifying rays, her voice has been also responded 
from the shores of the Emerald Isle. Soaring aloft, she 
|ias visited the snow-clad cliffs of Switzerland, and the 
glaciers of despotism which there congealed the freedoofj 
of the mind, have melted at her approach. 

Thence pursuing her mighty flight, she has passed 
over the Rhine, and beyond the Vistula; and now ani- 



6 

mates, with holy ardor, the bravest nation of Europe in 
their last glorious struggle for freedom. 

Though pressed on all sides by the innumerable hordes 
of the Autocrat, the noble Polish nation knows no watch- 
word but Liberty, no shield but its valor ; and despite 
the itnmense disparity of force arrayed against her, she 
still hurls defiance at the foe, and victory sits triumphant 
on her banner. 

Go on, brave nation, in thy gloriotis career, for the 
hearts of all freemen are M'ith )'ou; and long as the 
breasts of Americans continue to throb, they will send 
forth their aspirations for the land of Kosciusko. 

The principles in regard to Government, which at 
present divide mankind, may be reduced simply to two 
— the one, a Government formed by, and for the few, in 
which the great bulk uf the pcuplc have no control ; 
such an one is termed Aristocratic or Despotic. The 
other, a Government, in which the people at large have 
the controlling influence ; and where the power of their 
rulers emanates from the popular voice — Such is called 
a Republic. 

All governments whatever, partake in a greater or less 
degree, of the two 1 have named. 

The question, which of these is most applicable to our 
circumstaiicts, and conducive to our happiness, has been 
so long and so firmly settled in the minds of the American 
people, that it requires no further illustration from me. 

Suffice it to say, that all failh in the perfection or in- 
violability of Kings, has, with us, become long since ex- 
tinct; and seems, at the present period, to be rapidly 
vanishing from the earth. 

The bulwark of a despotic government is founded in 



riic ignorance of tlic people; but the strength of a Rc- 
Diiblic consists in the intelligence of its citizens. 

Hence it is, that Education forms the grand basis of 
all FriC Governments, whose existence and permanency- 
depend on that knowledge which supports the main pil- 
lars of the edifice. 

And as. the luxuriant banks of the Nile repay by their 
fertility, the enriching tribute which she annually bears 
to hershores^ 

%^(i, wl:ile^iil)eriy, on the one hand, lends her aid to 
the extension of knowledge ; IWHHBfiBBSa^, the supe- 
rior intelligence thus generated, stienglhuns and sup- 
ports the fabric of Freedom. 

Perfection in a Republican Government, can there- 
fore, only be acquired and maintained, in proportion to 
the intellectual advancement of its citizens. 

If then, we should neglect this great point, and allow 
ourselves to sink to a level with the Republics of farmer 
ag^cs, we should doubtless, like them, fall into an abyss, 
over which despotism alone would rise triumphant. 

Let me then, fellow citizens, exhort you to a full con- 
sideration of the benefits of Education, that bulwark of 
our Liberties, and foundation of our prosperity. 

Let me call upon every parent to watch over the in- 
struction of his children, as he would wish to guard their 
happiness, and the welfare of the Republic ; and whate- 
ver may be his anxieties in other respects, let this be the 
primary object of his solicitude. 

The overthrow of the Ancient Republics may be fairly- 
attributed to the fact, that the quantum of inielligencc 
was more than counterbalanced by the burthen of igno- 
rance. And in truth, the brightest ages of ancient phi- 



iosophy might almost be termed gross darkness, when 
contrasted with the present enlightened state of mankind. 

For, although a bright star here and there shed its 
light over the (then) known w^orld, yet, for want of the 
genial influence of general Education, its rays were con- 
fined almost to the narrow limit of its own intelligence; 
and if indeed, in some cases, they burst forth conspi- 
cuously for a time, they became at last, overpowered 
and shrouded, amid the darkness and ignorance which 
almost Covered the earth. ^ 

Had thotW'AlU'Uilll i^«fmblics possessed the advanta- 
ges for general instruction which our own country pre- 
sents, Rome, with her myriads, would not have yielded 
to the dictation of a Nero , nor the legions of Greece 
have succumbed to the sceptre of tyrants. 

There is another point, my fellow citizens, to which I 
cannot refrain from calling your attention' — it is the ex- 
cessive violence often displayed in folitical contests. — 
And although it is true that in this respect, our counufy 
is one of those which least merit censure, we may still 
add to our stock of prudential knowledge. 

The spirit of enquiry and of judicious investigation is, 
in every respect, worthy of a free people, and no usur- 
pation should ever he allowed to curtail it. But, in our 
examinations of the pretensions of rival candidates for 
office, let us act with calmness and discretion ; and in 
our argumentative discussions, let us pursue a course of 
niilrtness and forbeaiance. 

Turbulence and passion seldom tend to produce con- 
viction on the mind, and are therefore, futile in the very 
object which they are desired to accomplish. The free- 
born spirit of our citizens can brook no other Ian- 




guage but that of persuasion and conciliation. Let us 
then abjure, that political frenzy too often manifested in 
our land, which serves but to generate a spirit of discord 
and ill-will; for we may at least enjoy our own opinions, 
without making war upon those of our neighbors. 

Happily, each one of us possesses equal claims to the 
exercise and expression of his sentiments ; and when we 
consider that we are all members of one national fami- 
ly, and that notwithstanding slight differences may exist 
on minor points, we are equally attached to our common 
country ; shall we not bury all these trivial animosities 
beneath the endearing title of brethren of the same Re- 
public ? 

Among the proud titles which we claim for our coun- 
try, is that of the American Union. An Union, my 
brethren, formed under the happiest auspices, and which 
has been promotive of the most beneficial results. 

At the epoch of our Revolution, the thirteen States 
then existing, united like a band of brothers, in the same 
noble effort for the cause of civil Liberty. With one 
voice, they protested against the tyranny of Britain, and 
threw the gauntlet of defiance at their oppressors. At 
that eai-ly period, when our Country was yet but in her 
infancy, had each one of tiio Btates engaged single han- 
ded with the foe ; each would doubtless have been 
crushed in its turn, during the unequal contest — but uni- 
ted in a noble brotherhood, they, with one accord, pro- 
mulgated to the world, that Declaration of Indepen- 
dence, which was so gloriously consummated in the 
triumph of our Liberties. 

It was not, however, until the year 1789, that the com- 
pact now existing, was rendered perfect, by the full con- 



10 

federation of the States ; and the Union which was then 
consolidated, was not the result of a cold calculating po- 
licy, but of a liberal spirit of compromise, in which the 
several Stales waved many considerations of local inte- 
rest, for the advancement of the general welfare. 

It is then to this generous spirit of accommodation, 
that we are indebted for the adoption of the Constitu- 
tion, under which we have so long lived; and whftn we 
all are so sensible tkat our Union has been most signally 
blest; who among us would wish to sever that chain of 
fellowship, which has so long and so happily bound us to 
each other? 

Not only are we indebted to this Union for that friend- 
ly intercourse which extends from Maine to Florida, but 
from it we derive that power at home, which commands 
respect abroad; and indeed, it may be said that from the 
same source emanates almost every blessing we enjoy. 

It is to be expected that local discussions and diffe- 
rences of opinion may occasionally arise, but even these 
may be obviated or allayed by the exercise of judgment 
and forbearance ; and I truly believe, notwithstanding 
the occasional demonstration of such feelings, that the 
sympathies of our fellow countrymen warmly attach 
them to each other, ond that a opirit pervades our land, 
which will long continue to unite indiscriminately, in 
the bonds of fellowship, our brethren of the North, of 
the South, of the East, and of the West. 

Let it then be our pride to maintain, unsullied, an 
Union which has perfected our happiness and our pros- 
perity ; and ever to bear in our minds the determination, 
that the brilliant laurels which united, we have won, 
shall not be tarnished by internal dissentions. 



11 

Sucb, my fellow citizens, were the sentiments of the 
illustrious WASHINGTON; and while we ever con- 
tinue to venerate the parental advice of that sainted FA- 
THER OF OUR COUNTRY, let us preserve an Union 
firm and indivisible; and spurn, with indignation, from 
our shores, him who would pluck one star from the 
Ameiican Constellation. 

Permit me now, to take a partial glance at the present 
condition and prospects of our country. 

"What, in the early days of our Republic, Avere but the 
hopes and fond anticipations of our pai'ents, we now see 
assuming, on every side, the liappiest consummations of 
reality. 

While some nations are agitated by outward attacks 
or internal dissentions, and others seem retrograding be- 
neath the iron hand of despotism; our Countiy has be- 
come the promised Land of Liberty, the asylum of the 
oppressed, and her inviting shores exhibit all the grati- 
fying attributes of plenty and of peace. Agriculture^ 
that basis of national wealth, is rapidly increasing th© 
products of our soil. The rugged hills of the East, and 
the boundless prairies of the West, alike yield their tri- 
butes to the skill and enterprize of the husbandn:an. 

Where, but yestcrrlay, the mighty lords of the Forest 

rose in all their native grandeur; to-day we listen to the 
joy;ms notes of festive villagers gathered around their 
cheerful habitations. 

Those dark and dreary recesses, concealed amid th« 
wilds of nature, which ne'er had received the impress of 
human footstep^ save only the lone track of the savage; 
and whose gloomy solitudes, the beams even of a mer^. 
dian bun, ne'er iiad power to penetrate, have now opened 



1^ 

their bosoms to the passage of out numerous Canals, on 
whose gay banks are witnessed the exhilarating scenes . 
of business and mirth, while the passing breeze wafts to 
our ear the gladsome notes of the boat song. 

Where erst, nought was heard but the wolf howling 
in the wilderness, and beasts of the forest hunting for 
their prey, we now see our fields clad in all the luxuri- 
ance of fertility, and the playful lambs frisking in joyous 
gambols o'er the verdant prairies. 

The Arts are, in like manner, attaining to new de^-^e- 
lopements, emanating from the skill and spirit of enqui- 
ry which predominates through our land. 

Our 3Ia/uifactures, after combating innumerable diffi- 
culties connected with the rivalry and cupidity of foreign 
countries, have acquired a degree of perfection which 
already enables them to compete successfully in many 
fabrics with those of Britain and of France; and the 
happy period seems rapidly approaching, when we shall 
no longer need to rely on foreign sources for supplies 
of any kind, but may claim a perfect independence of all 
other climes. 

Internal Improvements, of every description, are ra- 
pidly unfolding to our view, the riches and resources of 
our country; and aided by the fostering hand of our 
Crovernment, they will, no doubt, attain a state of per- 
fection, highly beneficial to our interests, and honorable 
to the Nation. 

Our Commerce, which some had supposed would be 
diminished by the protecting laws, granted for our Manu- 
factures, ivS, on the contrary, more prosperous at the pre- 
sent, than at any former period. 



13 

The enterprize of our Mariners has proved more.than 
equivalent to all rivalry of competitors. 

Our Ships, models of their kind, excite the admiration 
of the world; and Commerce, the handmaid, both of 
*!\gnc»Jture asd the Arts, transports our products to eve- 
ry quarter of the Globe, and unfurls the starry banner 
on every Sea. 

The pursuits of Literature and Science are also ma- 
king great advances among us, and ihe eminent writers 
which our country boasts at the present day, may be 
justly ranked among the brightest stars of the age in 
which we live. 

When such, ray fellow citizens, is the infancy of our 
Country, what may we not. hope for at the fulness of 
her maturity? 

Let me then anxiously solicit from those around me, 
whose age and example carry with them our affection 
and our gratitude, to still continue to impart to us the 
benefits of their precepts and their counsel. Let me 
implore the young to rally around the Standard of our 
Country, to guard, with watchful solicitude, the precious 
boon which our venerable fathers have bequeathed to 
us ; and to cherish the determination to transmit, unsul- 
lied, to future gencratione, the same blessing of Civil 

and Religious Liberty. 

Let us also, my brethren, unite at this auspicious mo- 
ment, in recalling to mind the Heroes who so nobly 
fought and bled for our cause ; and in offering a sacred 
tribute to the memory of departed worth. And while 
we mingle our gratulations with those Veterans and Sa- 
ges of our Country, who are still left to bless us by their 
presence, let our hearts also join in fervent devotion to 



14 

the Omnipotent Benefactor of the Universe, and invoke 
his protection for the votaries of Liberty throughout the 
world. 

To the Army and the Navy of our Country, we owe a 
debt of gratitude, which the aspirations of frecd«A are 
alone competent to repay. And fiom the geneious de- 
votion which you, her military defenders, have, at all 
times evinced, our Republic gathers the most perfect 
confidence, that in her future appeals to ytiu, at periods 
of National danger, her voice will ever be nobly an- 
swered. 

But, my fellow citizens, with our present population 
of thirteen millions of freemen, combined with the ad- 
vantages of our peculiar location, we have but little to 
fear from any foreign power. 

Let !jther Nations engage in broils, and in conquests 
of each otJier; but let our exertions be directed to the 
conciuests of nature; to clear the wilderness, cultiA'^ate 
the field, and bid the golden harvests of our land to glad- 
den the hearts with plenty, and the desert to blossom as 
the rose. 

And what brighter incentives to emulation need we to 
desire, than those which surround us on every side. A 
Country extending froii> the St. Lawrence to the Gulf 
of Mexico; and which owns nv other limits but the At- 
lantic and the Pacific; embracing in her immense do- 
main, every climate requisite for the production of the 
necessaries and the luxuries of life; what other boon 
have we to ask of nature ? 

Her majestic Rivers, her mighty Lakes, her lofty Fo- 
rests, her rich Vallies and fertile Plains, and the noble 
race of her Aborigines, all conspire to prove that a glo» 



15 

lions destiny avvaits her; and that she is ordained by the 
God of nature, for the most grand and sublime deve- 
lopements. Animated with these inspiring sensations, 
the soul expands with delight at the exalted prospects 
which futurity presents. 

Let then, the favored Sons of America, unite their 
gratulalions at each return of this auspicious era, in one 
spontaneous effusion of patriotism and gratitude; and 
while we thus emulate the noble example of our fathers 
by this tribute of enthusiastic devotion; let us ever 
cherish the joyous anticipation, that our country, in the 
continuance of her mighty progress, will, like some 
splendid luminary, send forth her radiant beams to eve- 
ry corner of the earth; until, in the consummation of 
her illustrious career, she shall have marked out a course, 
lofty as is the flight of her eagle, and brilliant as the 
stars that emblazon her banner. 



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